Life Hacks
by PennePastaSauce
Summary: Percy Jackson is an ex-Hexagon hacker who tried to escape the Hexagon with his family, while Annabeth is a new agent in the program. She is sent to capture him, but something changes in her mission. Something she doesn't expect. This is a mainly action/romance, but also large amounts of sci-fi and some adventure. A little Percabeth. Rated T for violence, language, and other things.
1. PrologueChapter 1

**Prologue**

" _Perseus Jackson has escaped! I repeat, Perseus Jackson has escaped with his famil-_ I quickly shot the man's radio and punched him in the face, knocking him out.

Red lights flashed above me while sirens blared. _Shit shit shit shit shit_ I ran the curse word over and over in my mind. I was _not_ prepared for this. Then again, my preparation also didn't expect to have a fellow guard right as I hacked the door.

"Come on!" I urged my parents to run faster. _Only a couple more seconds._ I watched the large door start to close slowly. I cursed under my breath again. They put on another burst of speed, but there was only a slim chance that they could make it out now.

"Percy, go without us!" My mom yelled.

"Never, I'm getting you guys out.

"There's no chance for us now…"

"Mom, please, you can make it" As soon as the words left my mouth, I knew they were false. I wanted so bad to believe that they would make it. The door was going to shut in only seconds, and I didn't have the time to reopen it.

"Take Tyson before you go" My dad threw a little baby in a steel casket towards me, which landed at my feet with a _thunk_. Nodding, I reluctantly stepped through the door and towards the outside world. I watched my parents try to make it through, but it was a futile attempt.

As the door slowly closed, I turned away and ran, as far away as I could from the large building I used to call home. As I ran through the rain, water poured down against my face. However, some of the raindrops tasted strangely like salt ( **AN: Rangers Apprentice reference anyone?** )

 **Chapter 1**

 **Percy POV**

I clutched Tyson's meaty hand as we roamed the streets of New York.

"Where are we going Percy?" I gripped his hand tighter.

"Somewhere you'll like"

"I hope I do like it, I'm hungry" I looked down at my little brother's face, and reluctantly pulled out a piece of my beef jerky.

"Here you go" He grabbed it hungrily and ate it.

"Is there more?"

"No, I'll go buy some food at night" He nodded.

"My feet hurt"

"We're almost there" After another couple of hours later, we finally arrived at our destination.

"Percy, I'm so tired" *pant* "I need water, or fruit punch, or something" I gave him a bottle of warm water and he chugged it down.

"I'm going to go find some food and water, you go make yourself home in this apartment" I gestured to the large building in front of us. Then, I gave him a room key. Go to room 250. And if anyone asks where your parents are, just say that I'm waiting for you in the room.

"Okay Percy"

After he left, I checked the roads for anyone that could witness what I was about to do. Then again, I wasn't expecting to see anyone on the streets at 2:00 AM. I hesitantly walked across the street to a nearby supermarke. Rubbing my hands together, I took out a device that immediately shut off all power in a half-mile radius. Grinning, I easily opened the metal door and walked in. Now that everything was technology-based, hacking was a skill that was indeed very useful in this country.

"Hmm… what could we use?" I looked at the fridge and saw a large box of ice cream.

"Tyson would like that…" 15 minutes later, I stepped out of the store with three large carts full of drinks, food, and supplies that I would need. I made sure that all the store cameras where shut down before hauling my goods into the apartment.

"Hello sir, what room?"

"Oh I'm just here to deliver these things to a person who ordered them online" I gestured to my shopping "goods"

"Oh, okay. You can go" I carried my supplies into the elevator and found room 250.

"Psst, Tyson" I knocked on the door.

"Percy? Finall- Who are you?" He stood at the doorway, shocked at my appearance.

"Shhh, it's me Tyson. I just dyed my hair and put on contacts" I popped out my contacts and showed him a lock of my black hair.

"Why?"

"The man there said I could get these goods for free if I looked like that" Tyson nodded. As old as he was, Tyson was very innocent for his age, and didn't understand the concept of stealing. I sighed. Eventually, he would have to fend for himself, so I would have to tell sooner or later.

"Come on, we have lots of time to rest." He nodded and slowly went to sleep.

 **Annabeth POV**

I strolled through the streets of New York, breathing the cool, crisp air. If only I could have more of this every day, how luxurious that would be. I sighed, knowing that my life was nothing luxurious. I had spent the last few years of my life as an illegal hacker, and there was nothing good with that. I wanted to be an architect, but extremely high university fees didn't allow me to do that. And of course, a hacking for dummies book just had to pop up in the middle of the road. I mean, what kind of luck is that?

I walked around, looking for a good store to loot. I felt bad stealing, after all those people had paid well to sell those goods. However, this world was always a Survival of the Fittest kind of place. I shoved my hands in my pockets and kept on walking, when a certain billboard caught my eye.

 _Good at hacking? Audition for the Hexagon! New open spot! No pay to get in, and if you pass you get combat training, and a luxurious life. Audition now at the Hexagon!_ I didn't read the rest of it. I ran as fast as my little legs could get me to my new job, and new home.

-Page Break-

"Mhm, and you're here because you want to fill in our position as a professional hacker?" I nodded. She jotted something down on her board before yelling into the intercom.

"Mrs. Grace? Yes yes, we have another one. Come down, you know what to do" Minutes later, an athletic woman with spiky black hair and electric blue eyes came jogging up the stairs.

"So, you think that you can fill in our empty spot" She seemed amused, but there was also a challenging tone in her voice.

"Uh huh" She looked me over, and seemed content with what she saw.

"Very well. But what makes you think that you can make it?" She said while walking down the hall. I followed her, and realized I had been asked a question.

"What makes you think that I _won't_ be able to be a professional hacker?" She paused, and continued to stroll down the hall.

"It's just that the past… hmm let me see" She whipped out an iPhone and turned to me. "23 people have tried. And failed"

"Oh" I had to admit, I knew that hacking was a job that wasn't too rare, but this was a bit much.

"How long has this spot been vacant?"

"For about…" she counted on her fingers "12 years?"

"Wait, you haven't found the right person in _12 years?"_ She sighed.

"All of them are good, but none of them are good enough"

"But why not just hire a really good one and just resume?"

"Well, we're hoping for someone better than him, or atleast the same skill. And that's very hard"

"But why?" She turned to me, so that our noises were almost touching.

"Curious aren't you? I thought you would've already thought about why. We need someone to capture him"

 **Percy POV**

"Percy?" I looked at Tyson, who blinked at me sleepily with large eyes.

"Yeah?"

"Where's mommy and daddy?" I blinked for a second, before shooting out of bed.

"How do you know about mommy and daddy?"

"Well obviously we had to have one" I blinked once again. When had I told him about that.

"Wait, how do you know that?" He rolled his eyes.

"What, do you think I'm stupid? First of all, I'm already 12, and second of all, everyone's families always has a mom and a dad" _Oh._

"I just wanted to avoid the topic" I stroked his hair softly.

"Okay, but can you tell me?"

"They were taken by the bad guys"

"Are they still alive?" I shook my head.

"I don't know, but I'm trying to find out."

"How?"

"You see there?" I pointed at the Hexagon, which even from miles away you could see from a high elevation, loomed.

"Yeah?"

"Mommy and daddy are probably there. They'll be waiting for us"

"Why don't we go back to them? It looks so comfy"

"It's a bad place in there Tyson. It may be luxurious and nice on the outside, but the people and rules that live inside" I shuddered. "We want to avoid that"

"Okay"

"Go to sleep Tyson" As he turned away from me to sleep, I thought about what he had said. What if Sally and Paul weren't alive? _No, you have to hold onto that chance that they will live. They need you._ But what if my parents weren't alive? I had to be there for Tyson, he was still so young. However, what if he could go back? Or make a living by himself, get a wife and a family? What would happen to me?

I would have neither. After all, Tyson was the very last person I loved dearly that I knew still existed. I might as well kil-

 _No. Don't think like that. They'll be alive. And if they aren't, you'll always be there for Tyson. If he's gone, then…_ The sentence was left unanswered, and I kept it that way. I grabbed a blanket, enjoying the warmth, and slowly went to a fitful sleep.

 **AN: Just to clear up, this story IS NOT post-apocalyptic. And for the people that read Of All Possibilities, I am STILL UPDATING THAT. I just don't update much because I'm on vacation. Sorry** **There is some Percabeth, but this is 95% Action/Sci-Fi**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 1**

 **AN: Whao, three reviews on the first chapter? :D**

 **Rhino109:** This is an awesome idea. Keep up the great work and excellent writing. **Thanks!**

 **0fictionluver0:** Wow! This was a great start to the story! I can't wait to read the next chapter **You don't have to wait anymore! Well, until you finish this chapter at least.**

 **Guest:** Dude put this story in the crossover of Percy and watch dog **This story was actually inspired by Legend, and I decided to add a bit of watch dog to it. The reason this isn't a crossover is because though it has ideas from other stories/games, actual characters/landmarks and terms are all PJO/HOO.**

 **Annabeth POV**

"Uh huh…"

"So, do you think you're up for the test?"

"Well, I don't really have a choice now, do I? I could have a luxurious place to live in and have food to eat, or live on the streets by the illegal life." She nodded, understanding.

"Follow me" She led me into a dark room with a large computer. "Here, is a computer. Your goal is to hack the computer in the given amount of time. I will not tell you any information about the computer and other technology surrounding it, nor the amount of time you need to hack it. Your time starts NOW"

I scrambled to the keyboard and quickly looked the computer over. At first glance, this was your average monitor with a PC, but I could detect top of the line security behind it. I rubbed my hands together in anticipation. My hands flew across the keyboard, and I was so caught up with my work that I had forgotten something…

"Your time is up!" I sat back in tiredness, before realizing that my work wasn't done. My fingers itched to continue my work, but it was no use. I sighed and sat back while Mrs. Grace examined my work.

"Okay, the results are in. Let's go to the front desk and see them"

"Wait, why not just view them here?"

"It's not my place to do that"

"Mhm… okay" She led me back down the hall and where the lady at the front desk was. I looked at her nametag, which read Katie.

"Okay, let's see how well you did" I swear I vaguely heard her mutter _Or how much you failed._ I tried to calm down my nerves, but my heart was practically jumping out of my chest.

"Okay, and your grade is…" When I heard the phrase "Jaw dropped to the floor" I always knew it was figurative, but Katie's mouth quite literally looked as if someone had put a stone weight inside it.

"What's the grade Gardner?" Mrs. Grace tapped her foot impatiently.

"She-" Katie pointed at me. "She passed!" Thalia looked at me, and then back at the computer.

"Let me see" She grabbed the monitor and turned it towards her.

"Oh"

"Did I do well?" Mrs. Grace looked at me, and then the monitor, and then back at me.

"Yes…" I mentally did a triumphant little dance. Finally, I could settle down, not steal things for a living, maybe even meet someone nice and have a family-

"Get over here" Mrs. Grace grabbed me and pulled me down another hall.

"Okay, this is really important. I need to tell Gary that you're the one"

"Wait, what one?"

"You're very important to us"

"Why?"

"We need you to help on a mission" Right as she said the words, my hopes for a normal life were shattered. She must've seen my crestfallen face because she put on a sympathetic expression.

"Hey, but when you succeed you'll be a hero. You can finally have a taste of the luxurious life, and everyone will love you." She looked me over. "Not that most of the boys haven't already"

"Huh?"

"Have you seen yourself? If you can get yourself cleaned up, I bet half of our teenage population will be chasing after your heels"

"Why?" She shook her head.

"You have that beauty within you, but don't worry. With the combat training I'll give you, you're going to be kicking their little asses in no time"

"Wait, you're training me?"

"Mhm. I might as well introduce myself. I'm Thalia Grace" She offered me a hand.

"Annabeth Chase, nice to meet you" I shook her hand.

"You're saying that now, let's see what you'll say after you go through training" Thalia smirked.

 **Percy POV**

"Tyson, you always beat me at chess. This isn't fair!"

"No, you're just dumb"

"How?"

"You can't do anything that's smart" He grinned playfully. _If only he knew who I was._

"Mhm. I bet I could beat you at a lot of things"

"Like?" _Combat, athletics, technology, stealing-_ Tyson must've noticed my hesitation and smiled.

"See, nothing"

"Uh huh, we'll see my talents soon later"

"Like?"

"I bet I could easily beat you in a fight"

"Well duh, you were trained in the Hexagon"

"How the hell do you know that?"

"Mom and Dad would carry me and watch you train with Kane" My blood ran cold at the last word.

"Don't say his name" I said through gritted teeth. He seemed confused by my reaction, but decided against asking.

"Just go to sleep Tyson" He nodded and draped a blanket on his body. I stood up, and went to the bathroom for a shower. I took off my shirt, revealing a lean body, but also a jagged scar that ran up my chest from my waist to my armpit. I shuddered at the memory.

 _Flashback_

" _Percy" I turned to Kane, my personal trainer in combat for the Hexagon._

" _You've done well" I grinned. As much as I disliked Kane, I knew that the tough brutal training was for my own survival, and that every complement was hard to get from him._

" _Thank you"_

" _You have endured many tests" He continued, as if I didn't exist. "You will have one more" I cocked my head to the side, curious._

" _What?" He smiled, bringing his lips up in a cruel grin._

" _Me" He lunged forward, taking his two swords out of the scabbards. My shock quickly passed as I grabbed a gun out of its holster. I shot two quick bullets which… splat onto his shirt like juice?_

" _You really think I would let you bring a gun to a sword fight?" I realized that my gun was actually a water gun disguised as my usual Remington 1911. Cursing, I grabbed a knife and stood in a defensive stance._

" _Your test" He began, as if he didn't just attack me. "Is to wound me without being killed"_

" _Seems like an easy test"_

" _You wish"_

 _I quickly rushed him, but instead of attacking him I vaulted over his head and towards the weapons rack._

" _All of those guns don't work too!" He smiled, but I wasn't going for the guns. I threw the knife in my hand at him and quickly stocked up on weapons. Five throwing knives, two Japanese katanas, and an average cleaver were on the shelf. I grabbed all but the cleaver and ran to the other wall of weapons._

" _Oh don't you even try you little ass" He said and swiftly came towards my direction. I threw all of my five throwing knives at him with all the precision and accuracy as I could, but he deflected them with his sword. I stood there, mouth agape as his sword whirled around, cutting the metal knives to pieces._

" _What is that sword made of?" He clicked his tongue in disappointment._

" _I taught you to recognize these materials, in fact I especially drilled this one into your head for this test" Suddenly the answer came to me. I ran as fast as I could to the weapon forge we owned so that I could learn to make my own weapons, and grabbed a metal staff with a pointed wooden end at the top, tossing it into the fireplace. I then grabbed the now flaming torch and waved it at him. He slowed to a halt, seeing the glowing staff in my hand._

" _I see I taught you well, but that is no matter" He grabbed a little balloon and threw it at me with deadly accuracy. It landed perfectly onto my staff, exploding and sending water everywhere. When I looked back, only a small flicker of flame was left. Cursing, I ran and ran from my teacher until I couldn't see him. Suddenly, I saw a flicker of movement from the side and a knife being pointed right at my heart. I dodged to the side, but felt the knife graze my chest, leaving a long gash in its wake. I yelled in pain, and fell to the ground. My legs were like butter, and my feet felt like lead. I lifted my head up, but the pan was unbearable. With shaking hands, I held my katana and stabbed backwards, feeling flesh. I twisted and sliced upwards, before looking behind me. There lay the now dead body of Kane Louis._

 _Flashback end._

I still don't remember how I killed him. Call it instinct, I just knew that he was behind me, with his sword raised to kill me. I remember how I twisted my blade into his gut, and sliced upwards into his heart. I had murdered the best fighter in the Hexagon. My hands trembled from my sudden flashback, and I suddenly lost the feeling of needing to bathe. I slipped on my sleeping clothing and went o sleep.

 **AN: Wooo! I hope you liked it, and to be honest I'm liking the Annabeth POV more than Percy's since Percy isn't doing anything ATM. However, don't worry both characters get to kick ass and Nico is going to pop up later in the story.**


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